Meet isacs International Guests at Spraoi 2026

Deb Wilks, is a seasoned arts professional with over 20 years of experience in the Australian circus scene, & is a driving force in the Performing Arts sector. Her dedication has led her to collaborate with emerging and established artists, all while nurturing her passion for enhancing artists’ business skills and the broader recognition of the Arts among non-artists. This passion serves as the foundation for Cluster Arts. Deb is known for her quick thinking and creative approach to problem-solving, understanding the crucial role of strong governance. Her career boasts impressive roles as CEO of Flipside Circus from 2009to 2015. Her qualifications include a Graduate Diploma in Management (Arts& Culture) and is an Alumni of the esteemed Asialink Program. To Deb, the Circus and performing arts community is a global family, and she relishes the opportunity to connect with artists worldwide. She eagerly anticipates the innovative contributions of the next generation of emerging Artists.

Co-Artistic Director of the St. John’s International CircusFest, Carole Demers is a true enthusiast of circus arts. An accomplished acrobat for most of her life, she gained international recognition as a Russian bar flyer with her trio The WhiteCrow, which earned numerous prestigious awards on major international stages, including gold at the Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain, a SilverClown and two world records at the Festival International du Cirque deMonte-Carlo, and the Silver Award at the Budapest International Circus Festival.

Dan is a physical theatre and circusperformer turned festival organiser,venue owner and arts entrepreneur basedin Estonia. He also provides businesseducation and support for creativesthrough courses, 1-1’s and mentoring.

Deryck is Chief Executive and Artistic Director of Play to the Crowd, an Arts and Education Charity incorporating: Theatre Royal Winchester, a 400-seat heritage venue; Hat Fair, an internationally renowned Outdoor Arts Festival; A range of community and young people’s participatory activities and projects including Playmakers Youth Theatre.

The charity’s vision is to ‘Delight and Unite Communities’ and this drives Deryck’s passion for the arts. In 2023 Deryck was made an Honorary Fellow of The University of Winchester for services to the Arts. Before coming to Winchester in 2017, Deryck spent five years as CEO and Artistic Director of Pavilion Dance South West, a national dance development organisation and before that he was Artistic Director of Salisbury Arts Centre for five years.

Deryck’s background is in theatre, teaching and arts development. Prior to working in arts management, he spent fifteen years designing, teaching on and managing performing arts courses in secondary schools and further education colleges. He remains committed to enabling young people to develop their talents and pursue their passions.

Deryck believes Arts and Education have the power to transform lives and are fundamental to a life worth living. Arts and Education should be basic human rights for everybody.

Ian Morley is a creative professional and is exceptionally passionate about developing artists and creative encounters. He has worked in the arts sector in Yorkshire for over 25 years, taking on many roles from producing large scale outdoor festivals and events to programming venues, intimate theatre projects, touring small-scale theatre, producing community theatre projects and performing, stage managing and leading creative workshops.

Freedom Festival – Freedom Festival, Hull’s flagship arts event. Attracting over 70,000 people to Hull the festival has harnessed the transformative power of the arts to address socially relevant topics like freedom, through the presentation of captivating performances, participatory projects and thought-provoking installations all presented in outside space, and free-to-access.

With a Diploma of Advanced Studies in Performing Arts, he worked for 10 years for the Maison des écrivains et de la littérature as a program manager for school and university writers, from 1997 to 2007. He then took over the direction of the Théâtre de Die (Drôme) from 2008, stage conventioned Art en Territoire in 2014. Finally, from 2018, he led the association Prix du Jeune Ecrivain (Haute-Garonne) until 2022. At the same time, he developed an activity as an independent show entrepreneur (production, distribution and exhibition of theatres in Avignon, where he co-directed the Rouge Gorge, the Archipelago and the Atypik Theatre, permanent theatres all year round). He also conducted from 2002 to 2017 Eclats, festival de la voix au Pays de Dieulefit and Une Saison de lecture in Paris, from 2003 to 2017. Since 2022, he was co-chair of AF&C, the organization that coordinates the Festival Off d’Avignon. Since November 2025, he is Deputy Chief Executive Officer.

Vice-president of circusnext.eu, the only platform dedicated to contemporary circus, supported by the European Union. Member of the management board of www.collectifxy.com; for 20 years now, the XY Collective has dedicated itself to the exploration and mastery of acrobatics, establishing these as a core artistic practice within the broader framework of the Performing Arts. An executive adviser of www.latitude50.be, the leading centre for circus and street theatre in Belgium, both for creation/production and presentation. Member of the board of the biggest folk festival in Belgium www.festivaldranouter.be, with a focus on Ireland this year.

Julia von Wild is a Bremen-based freelance cultural producer, curator, and festival director with more than two decades of experience in outdoor arts, festivals, and public space programming. As co-founder of the cultural office zweifellos.net, she has developed and produced numerous international arts projects and festivals. She is co-artistic director of the international outdoor arts festivals tête-à-tête in Rastatt and ParkPerPlex in Norderstedt, and has long been an advocate for innovative artistic practices that connect artists, audiences, and public spaces across Europe.

Kathrin Bahr (M.A. in German Literature, Cultural Studies). In 2012 she founded with Julia von Wild zweifellos.net – the office for culture, in whose name they organise festivals for outdoor arts.

She is the artistic co-director of the street theatre festival tête à tête in Rastatt, one of the largest festivals of its kind in Germany, which has become the most important festival for street theatre and contemporary circus and invites German and international artists to present medium-sized and large open-air productions to large audiences and European promoters.

International performing arts tourbooker/producer/manager with over 20 years of experience. Especialising inoutdoors/public space productions.

Claudia Ingrid Bellasi is an artist, cultural worker, and director. She graduated from the Università Statale diMilano with a degree in Italian modern literature with a focus on education. In her thesis, she examined humour as an educational and learning experience in adulthood. During her studies, she developed a strong passion for street art performances, new circus and theatre. She has been the Artistic Director of the Asfaltart International Street Art Festival in Merano for more than two decades. In this role, she defines the artistic programme and guides the festival’s creative direction. Her ongoing commitment has been fundamental to the festival’s growth and identity.

Markus Steiner Ender is a director, filmmaker, photographer and musician based in Merano with a keen eye for the essence of the performing arts. His work focuses on visual storytelling, particularly in the fields of street theatre, puppetry and cultural heritage. As part ofthe team behind the international street art festivalAsfaltart, he is responsible for communication,photography and online media, ensuring that thefestival’s artistic vitality reaches a wide audience.

Angelika Meusel is the artistic director of HOP!fest International Arts Festival, ( hopfest.fi ) Pori Finland. She is also a theatre maker and the artistic director of Rakastajat Theatre ( rakastajat.fi ), Pori. HOP!fest is a four-day festival and the first and only street arts festival in Finland. The festival takes place at the end of July and 2026 was the festival’s third edition.

Hugh Farrell is the Head of Cultural Affairs based at the Irish Embassy and Irish Cultural Centre in Paris, a role funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs & Trade and Culture Ireland.   With a remit covering the whole of France, Hugh’s role is to facilitate opportunities for Irish cultural practitioners by working with artists, institutions, and funding bodies alike to support the development, collaboration, producing and touring of Irish work in France.